State Says Battle Creek, Marshall Are Underfunding Retirements

Several cities in Calhoun County, including Battle Creek, aren’t putting enough money towards their employee retirement programs, according to a new study by the state.

The Michigan Department of Treasury says that out of 490 local government units that submitted information, 110 in the state are either underfunding their retiree pensions, heathcare plans, or both. That 110 includes Battle Creek, Marshall, and Union City. The Battle Creek Enquirer reports that Marshall’s retirement healthcare plan is only 3.1 percent funded, which the city says is because they pay as they go for retirement costs. Battle Creek’s municipal employee pension is 57.5 percent funded, which is just shy of the cutoff the state has set of 60 percent.

The Marshall District Library was also on the list, but the Library says they only have one employee in their healthcare and pension plans, and they have a payment plan in place to deal with the expense within five years.

This study was done after Michigan put into place a law that requires local governments to address the funding for their retirement plans, and either get a waiver or put together a corrective action plan and present it to the state, if they are deemed underfunded.